Hicks, Hipsters, Hijabs, and Hibachis

Ohayo and greetings from Japan! Ryan and I hit the ground running, or sleeping I guess, in the land of the rising sun.  We arrived at Haneda airport a bit delayed, landing around 11:30 pm on July 31st.  We stood in the well-signed immigration line for about 20 minutes.  Already we were loving the efficiency.  Right at immigration, we were issued our alien cards (residency permits) which act as our Japanese ID cards.   We only had a short way to walk to baggage claim where Maddie was waiting with her own gate agent for us next to the conveyor belt.  She made it safe and sound but was certainly a bit frightened.  Loading up our two luggage trolleys, we headed over to the customs import desk to have Maddie checked over and her import permit issued.  My last name was spelled incorrectly on the permit but the customs agent seemed to think that wouldn't be a big deal.  He didn't speak much English and we don't speak any Japanese so I...

We were incredibly lucky to begin Ryan’s sabbatical trip in Cairo, Egypt.  While there we worked at the Children’s Cancer Hospital, marveled the Giza pyramids, and were invited into the lives of new friends.  It was lovely to be a part of such a special culture during such a festive time (the beginning of Ramadan) if only for a short week.  The hospitality and kindness we were given makes me want to visit again and again. A short flight away, flying into Cairo was so exciting because I was able to catch my first glimpse at a handful of ancient pyramids.  There really are so many!  I knew Cairo was a large place but really the city goes on for miles and miles.  It could easily have taken 2 hours to drive from one side to the other and the way Cairo traffic goes, it would have been one crazy adventure.  I think the entire week we were there I only say 2 stoplights.   busy Cairo streets We stayed in the city center which was full ...

Do you love vibrant reef life?   Do you enjoy delicious curries?   Have you always wanted to arrive to tropical paradise via sea plane?   If you answered yes to all of these questions then book your trip to the Maldives now!  We couldn’t have gotten any luckier finding Filitheyo Island Resort amidst the hundreds of small island resorts, which was the most daunting part of the whole trip really.  The house reef was phenomenal, the food delicious, and the atmosphere was perfectly casual.  It was the first time we didn’t want to leave an island vacation and here is why. Just a short flight away from Doha, Qatar (about 4 hours) into the middle of the Indian Ocean we landed on Male island and headed to the seaplane transfer desk.  For once in my life I was not afraid to board a plane since it was equipped for a water landing.  I know I know, it may not be the most sound logic.  After a 40ish minute ride above breathtaking ...

Ryan and I took a quick trip to Jordan over Thanksgiving weekend.  We were extremely lucky to get a guided tour of some of the country from our new friend Moayad.  He picked us up from the Amman airport in chilly (by Gulf standards) drizzling weather.  It was nice to see the rain for sure.  We drove the 3.5 hour drive to Petra, stopping along the way to get roadside Turkish coffee, see Roman ruins, and have a quick falafel sandwich.  The landscape changed dramatically from rocky sandy soil, to rolling hills, than mountains and sandstone canyons as we headed south.  It was so different from the Gulf landscape that we have gotten used to, and for the first time I felt like I was in the Middle East.  As we got closer to Petra the rain stopped and the sun began to shine right down on the valley where we were headed. Moayad took us to Little Petra first which was a great warm up for what we would see the next day.  We hiked up a path to the ‘bes...

Winter is here and you know what that means:  scarves, warm blankets, chili for dinner, wine and movie nights. Errrr... scratch that (record sound), not that kind of winter. But seriously, winter is here in Doha and while that might mean temps in the 80’s during the day, I have been able to:  open my windows, wear close-toed shoes, run outside, and I went stand up paddleboarding this past weekend in the Gulf.  I eat lunch outside at school almost everyday and today we had our team meeting in the courtyard.  Isn’t that the funny thing:  put people in a climate where you can’t really go outside for half of the year and then you want to do every little thing outside when you can. I was so proud of myself paddleboarding - I didn’t even fall once and I couldn’t believe it, all of my yoga balancing must be paying off.  Ryan and I took a lesson at 2:30 in the afternoon and 90 minutes later it was starting to get dusk.  The sun sets so early, and ris...

So many things have been rapid pace since I moved to Doha, but I was lucky enough to take a quick break back in September to meet Ryan in Dubai.  He travels there quite a bit sometimes even once a week it seems and since it is only a 45 minute flight it is a nice jet-setting weekend.  The appeal of shopping at Victoria's Secret and the Birkenstock store drew me back to the UAE.  I know my bar was set pretty low but I needed new underwear people! I hit the ground running as I met Ryan at the hotel and we headed out to Dubai Marina where I finally got to meet some of his colleagues and enjoy a $20 glass of wine.  {Dubai prices are even steeper than Doha prices.} The following day we headed out for a Gulf Ski Adventure at Ski Dubai.  Pants, Jackets, skis, and boots were all included in the rental and we even had an Entertainer (their version of an Entertainment book) buy one get one free voucher.  Kathy Graves you would have been so proud!  Th...